Officials break ground for Tractor Supply in Frankfort

Wednesday

Aug 9, 2017 at 6:27 PMAug 9, 2017 at 6:29 PM

STEPHANIE SORRELL-WHITEGateHouse New York

FRANKFORT — Colin Yankee, senior vice president of distribution and logistics for Tractor Supply Company, recalled a “crisp November morning” at the Route 5S Business Park when envisioning a new distribution facility.

“I thought what a beautiful site this was,” he said. “We searched 30 sites, we looked around, and we knew this was it.”

Yankee spoke to about 120 guests for the company’s ceremonial groundbreaking Wednesday, where a 930,500-square-foot distribution center will be built to serve Tractor Supply’s Northeast stores. The project is expected to be completed next summer, with shipping expected to start by the end of 2018.

In April, Tractor Supply announced it would be bringing its $75 million project to Herkimer County, and along with it, the prospect of 350 jobs within six years.

Yankee said the Pumpkin Patch — as the site is commonly known as — was the “right location for transportation” and was site-ready.

Construction started Aug. 1, and although it started a month later than anticipated, the project is expected to be completed earlier than originally thought to help meet demand.

“The addition of this facility … is essential to our growth in the Northeast,” said Yankee during his ceremony remarks, noting there are 40 stores between Albany and Rochester.

Various Herkimer County leaders and officials attended the event, with several making remarks during the ceremony.

“What a great day for Herkimer County,” said Vincent Bono, chairman of the county Industrial Development Agency. “… We’re all so thankful for many of you being with us every step of the way.”

Bono said the vision for a shovel-ready industrial park started in 1996 to help bring “much needed jobs” to the area. Heidelberg Breads was the first tenant to open its doors at the business park about 20 years later, holding its ribbon cutting for the facility in October 2016. Tractor Supply will be the second business to open at the park.

Officials aren’t just excited about the potential for jobs at the facility.

“The multiplier effect of the jobs created by Tractor Supply will hopefully increase the number of jobs by almost double, not to mention the number of construction jobs that are being created,” said John Scarano, executive director of the Herkimer County Chamber of Commerce and a member of the Herkimer County IDA board. “[M]ost of these workers will be staying in the Mohawk Valley for months and spending [money] for goods and services during their stay.”

Empire State Development offered up to $3 million in performance-based Excelsior Jobs Program tax credits in order to encourage Tractor Supply to establish its northeast distribution center in Herkimer County, according to a state official.

“We have invested more in the Mohawk Valley in six years than the region had seen in decades — and it’s paying off,” said Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo in a statement released Wednesday. “Unemployment is down, while private sector jobs are up and we’ve successfully attracted Tractor Supply Company to Herkimer County, which will soon create 350 good jobs for hard-working Upstate New Yorkers. This is a huge win for Herkimer County and the entire region, and we look forward to a long, successful partnership with the company.”

Yankee said the company will announce to the public when they will start hiring for the facility and that job fairs will take place.

Tractor Supply Company was founded in 1938 as a mail-order tractor parts business and has grown into the country's largest rural lifestyle retailer, with more than 1,600 stores in 49 states. In New York state, the company operates 77 stores and employs more than 1,000 people.